Czarina's
Royal Table
Travels around the World

Epcot's
2001 International
Food & Wine Festival

by
The Czarina

This
review was originally published
in the November 13, 2001 issue #112 of ALL
EARS®.

(EXPLANATION
OF SORTS: The Czarina is a Real Person who visits -- a lot ­ at Walt
Disney World. She takes sole responsibility for all opinions stated below.
Do let us know what you think about this column at eureka@eurekajim.org.)

Dear,
Beloved Public ­

It
is High Noon at the International Gateway at Epcot. Picture if you will
the Czar and Czarina, tastebuds primed, embarking on a tour of World Showcase
during the Absolutely Fabulous 2001 Food and Wine Festival. We stroll
up the hill, sunshine dappling our weathered faces, past the shop on the
left and the Seine embankment on the right, continuing past the Mary Poppins
garden with its bees and butterflies, to the U.K. Pavilion.

Our
object on this tour was to sample only the delicacies available at the
Festival's food stands, not the regular Epcot restaurants.

"We
must try to keep moving," said the Czar. "Yes,"I replied,
"and kindly get away from that fish and chips stand. It is not part
of the Festival."

The
Czar moved on gamely, whimpering about Beavertails at the next pavilion.
I distracted him by pointing out the kids' menu at a Festival stand manned
by Pete from Coventry, just outside the Rose and Crown. This was intended
for children to have food fun with some cleverly concocted treats.

First
was a Taco Spritzer. This was pretty much a taco in a wineglass, with
some beef filling, a couple of chips and sour cream. It was actually a
very attractive idea, and Pete told us it was marketed for teens (a teeny
martini?), but many adults were ordering it. The Czar tried it and found
it delicious, and not too filling. Another offering was something called
Yummi Gummi Sushi, which certainly looked exactly like the Japanese version.
I bought a piece. "So, Pete" I said, "what's in this stuff?"
"Well, the rice is Rice Krispies Treat mashed up," he said,
"and the fish in the middle is actually cut-up Gummi Worms, and the
seaweed wrapper is made out of fruit leather!" "Thank you, how
interesting!" I replied, hastily wiping my hands and heading for
the nearest waste bin.

Fortunately,
the next stand didn't feature joke food, but Polish specialties. "Ah!'
cried the Czar, "Stuff-stuff with Heavy!" This is a term used
by us to denote food stuffed into other food, preferably with a heavy
sauce. Actually we stole it from Calvin Trillin, but don't tell anyone.
Pierogis with sour cream, offered here, are a perfect example. These potato
dumplings were paired with excellent- quality kielbasa, or Polish sausage.
The pierogis were a little gummy, but not bad at all. We also obtained
a really terrific, outstanding version of Beef Stroganoff, a huge bowl
of tender beef chunks cooked in red wine and sour cream, over egg noodles.

I
believe it was at this point that we pledged to drink a lot of water,
and forego all alcoholic beverages on our journey. I know, we were a couple
of wimpy wusses, but YOU try drinking Polish beer and red wine and sangria
in the Florida sun, while eating Stuff-Stuff with Heavy foods meant for
the Warsaw winter, and not falling on your face in a stupor somewhere
between Germany and Italy.

But
I digress. Passing the Canada stand on the theory that the Cheddar Cheese
soup and glazed salmon were available at Le Cellier, we forged on to Ecuador.
I bet you didn't know Ecuador was in Canada, did you? Well, it is. Just
as Ireland is between Norway and Mexico, as we were about to find out.
Ecuador featured chocolate-dipped bananas, which we did not know were
a national dish, and shrimp embedded in mashed potatoes. The shrimp were
pretty good, really ­- spiced with hot chilis. Sort of a cold version
of Stuff-Stuff with Heavy. We were beginning to think outside of the box,
which is the whole point of the Food and Wine Festival.

Next
was Ireland, where we shared a Baked Irish Bacon with Mashed Root Vegetables,
another dish intended to sustain people engaged in heavy labor on the
freezing moors or bogs. We disagreed about this; I found the bacon not
salty enough, more like boiled corned beef, but the Czar loved it. You
can't have too much Stuff-Stuff with Heavy.

Another
piece of Festival advice, intrepid food travelers; share dishes, and don't
feel you have to eat the whole thing. You are only investing a few dollars
on each item; if you want to sample, you don¹t have to clean your
plate every time.

"Norway,
hooray!" the Czar shouted, stumbling past the Viking ship toward
his favorite pavilion, home of the great Maelstrom ride and Rice Cream.
Here we discovered our second Blue Ribbon Dish (the Stroganoff being the
first), a perfectly chilled cold poached salmon with a creamy dill sauce.
At last, a Florida-friendly offering, also authentic to its country of
origin. And a good investment! It was a very large hunk of prime salmon
for very small bucks.

We
took a break. We rode Maelstrom. We drank another bottle of water. We
consider this essential to Festival survival.

On
to China. Finding our way blocked by the drawbridge, which was up to allow
the passage of fireworks barges, we lingered by the Southeast Asia stand.
The Chicken Satay was a reliable winner from years past, with great peanut
sauce. Unfortunately this same sauce was slopped over very cold, chewy
dumplings, which were right up there with the Yummi Gummi sushi in edibility.

"Excelsior!"
we cried, waddling on toward Germany. There we sampled the Pork Ribs with
Spaetzle (a starchy noodle), which was inoffensive but not served hot.
Undaunted, we pressed on to Italy, craving yet more Stuff-Stuff with Heavy.
We were not disappointed in the Penne Carbonara, very good pasta with
Alfredo sauce and Italian bacon. The Pizza was adorned with good quality
mozzarella and pepperoni ­ but cold pizza is not fun. Australia and
New Zealand, of course, were right next door to Italy, and offered a Festival
favorite, luscious lamb chops with a sweet- sour salsa, our third Blue
Ribbon Winner.

We
skipped most of the USA offerings, but the Czar's sweet tooth was beginning
to act up. He got himself a Honey Lemon Tart which he said was "over-sweet
but lemony." He backtracked for a Rice Cream at Norway and returned
a happy camper.

While
we are on the subject, we must pause to lament the omission, this year,
of the Chocolate stand. We know it is hard keeping chocolate items at
the right temperature in Orlando, but we think it is worth the effort.
Maybe next year.

Regretfully
bypassing the Specialty Beer Garden with its exotic brews, we pressed
on to Japan. There the Czar sampled their vegetarian sushi, with pickled
veggies in the middle instead of fish. He found it bland, but it was nice
to eat something out of the Stuff-Stuff with Heavy category.

Outside
Morocco we paused to watch the wonderful Mo Rockin group with its glamorous
belly dancer, snacking on the Marrakesh Combo ­- truly a small meal
in itself with chicken, kibbe, (spiced ground lamb), couscous, chickpeas
and turnips. Not too spicy and plenty for lunch, all by itself. They also
offered a sort of cooked salad of peppers and tomatoes pureed, a very
flavorful mush spiced with cumin. It would make a good dip.

There
were a few misguided ideas at the Festival stands. One example was the
Raclette from Switzerland. This is supposed to be piping-hot cheese with
little potatoes and bread to dip into it, but turned out to be a rubbery
slab on a paper plate. Some things just don't work as street food.

Witness
also the Escargots in France, four very, very large snails on bread with
an amazingly bright green sauce and walnuts. However, the Vol au Vent
at the same stand proved to be lovely chunks of chicken and good mushrooms
in a cream sauce.

This
proved to be our very last Stuff-Stuff with Heavy adventure. Amazingly,
almost without realizing it, we had come full circle around the World
Showcase Lagoon! Despite the incredible carbo- load, we did not feel the
need to park-hop to the Tomorrowland Transit Authority and snore while
repeatedly riding it (one of the Czar's favorite activities). We feel
that the exercise of walking and the lack of alcohol made the difference
for us.

There
is much, much more to the Food and Wine Festival than just the outdoor
"sample" stands. There are informal indoor tastings, wine seminars
(which are all free, and include wine samples), as well as the formal
dinners at which winemakers speak about the vintages offered with every
course. But for inexpensive, adventurous, informal, just-plain-fun dining
(available for lunch or dinner) you can't beat a Moveable Feast tour around
World Showcase at Festival time.

CZARINA'S
TOP TIPS: If you drink, share glasses and don't eat too much. If you don't
drink, share plates and don't forget the water. There is always something
good around the next corner, and you wouldn't want to miss out because
you're too full, would you?

WINNING
DISHES WE HOPE WILL BE BACK NEXT YEAR: Beef Stroganoff, Salmon with Dill
Sauce, Penne Carbonara and New Zealand Lamb Chops.

THE
BOTTOM LINE: In October and November, Epcot is a banquet. Schedule a vacation
to coincide with the Festival. Enjoy!

-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-

Editor's Note: This story/information was accurate when it was published. Please be sure to
confirm all current rates, information and other details before planning your trip.